Philadelphia 76ers: Ranking every player on the 2019-20 roster
14. Shake Milton
After a strong G-League season and a new extension, Shake Milton was a letdown in Summer League. He doesn’t look the part of a full-time point guard, a transformation the Sixers were hoping he’d make. He should still give valuable end-of-bench minutes, though.
At 22 years old, Milton is still coming into his own. The Sixers have him under a team-friendly contract for the next four seasons, so there’s no rush on his development. His skill set, on paper, complements the core quite well.
Even if he’s not a bona fide point guard, Milton is an intelligent passer with the feel of an NBA guard. He can effectively make reads in the pick-and-roll, slash to the basket and find open teammates. It’s a matter of adding more twitch and burst to his live-dribble game.
Milton can play next to Simmons, Embiid and the whole lot as a spot-up threat who, in advantageous matchups, can exploit hasty closeouts and leverage dribble penetration. He’s also a sneaky impressive defender, standing 6-foot-6 with long arms and good anticipation skills.
I’m not sure Milton is ready for the NBA this season, but he’s already too good for a full-time G-League gig. His archetype carries a lot of value nowadays, so Philadelphia’s investment makes sense. He should become a useful piece down the line.